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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27560791">31,536,000 Grains of Sand</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bean_allusions/pseuds/bean_allusions'>bean_allusions</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Unus Annus - Fandom, Video Blogging RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Goodbyes, I can't believe it's over, Meta, The End, Unus Annus Livestream</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 19:22:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>860</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27560791</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bean_allusions/pseuds/bean_allusions</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Mark, Ethan, Amy, Unus, and Annus live through the final second of the channel in a frozen moment in time.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Mark Fischbach/Amy Nelson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>31,536,000 Grains of Sand</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Amy sat between Mark and Ethan, the three in their suits that had become their funeral uniforms, not yet ready for the ten seconds left to tick down to zero.</p><p>"On three-"

</p><p>"Unus Annus." 

</p><p>They said it in unison, smiling at the main camera and watching the final seconds fall by on the monitor. 5... 4... 3... 2... 

</p><p>It stopped at 00:00:00:01. Amy, Ethan, and Mark looked at each other and then around at the world that had frozen around them. The minimal crew had stopped walking or moving at all, just in midair. A cable was falling off of a table near the back of the studio, trapped in time before it hit the ground, looking like a snake stopped mid-attack. 

</p><p>The three turned backward in unison. The spiral (which was <i>not</i> exponential, as Mark had pointed out earlier) had stopped spinning around the screen that showed the last second still holding on to time. Beside the screen on either side were two figures.

</p><p>One looked like Mark in the same white suit, his whole eyes glowing a pearlescent white. The other was a carbon copy of Ethan, his eyes completely obsidian.

</p><p>"Unus?" Ethan asked his near-mirror image.

</p><p>"Annus." Mark replied out loud to both his counterparts.

</p><p>"Oh." Amy said in disbelief, looking at the two stoic figures before her.

</p><p>"We just wanted to say goodbye," said Unus.

</p><p>"And thank you," added Annus.

</p><p>"We would not have existed without you all. Although this has been the only year of our lives, we can only describe it as having been the best one."

</p><p>A small black tear fell from Unus's solid black eye at his own words.

</p><p>"The content may have at times been silly or outrageous, but that was wherein the connection came from. Even with all of the fun, you never let <i>our<i> story die. The story of Unus and Annus."

</i></i></p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Annus let drops of white fall from his own eyes. The tears appeared to glow.

</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Ethan was the next to speak, very quiet and hesitant. "Now I don't know if I want to let you die." Ethan corrected himself. "To kill you."

</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Unus smiled and placed a black-nailed hand on Ethan's shoulder. "You made a promise. It is time for us to go. And the legacy will never truly die."

</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>"Unus is right," Annus said as he stepped forward, his hands together in the same gesture from every spiral video. "You created us. We were part of you this whole year. Even after this moment ends we will live on in you, if only as a memory. We are meant to die, but <i>you<i> go on."

</i></i></i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>Mark shook Annus's hand solemnly and whispered something between them. Annus nodded and whispered back a "thank you".

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>Unus stepped forward and wiped away Ethan's tears with his thumb.

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>"I'm sorry we messed up so much. I'm so sorry the ending felt rushed, I'm sorry we never got to thank you, that we didn't do enough to live up to your potential. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry-"

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>Ethan's body was racking with sobs. Unus and Annus both reached out to him. "You have given us life. You did your best and more. You taught us joy and pain and calm and fun and laughter and love. We are so proud."

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>The pair walked over to the other man in white for the final goodbye. "Be careful of your nose," Annus said, and Mark saw Unus smile.

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>Unus and Annus turned to Amy, who had been standing back, used to being humble and letting the boys step forward. Unus and Annus each wiped a stray tear off of her smiling cheeks and placed a hand on her arm.

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>"Thank you most of all. You gave us some of our best times here this year," said Unus. Annus reached into his jacket and pulled out a box. "We want you to have this. To keep it safe."

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>Amy opened the box. An hourglass, beautifully crafted in black and white with icons reminiscent of greek sculptures adorning the wood. Inside the glass, one single grain of black sand had yet to fall. "Thank you, both of you, so much." Amy held the hourglass close to her chest and sighed in disbelief. She smiled as Unus and Annus thanked her once again.

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>"It is time." Annus hesitated before he continued. "May we stay and watch the channel be deleted? It would add a closure to the last moments."

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      <i>"Of course," Mark said, and they all sat back down as they had before, Unus and Annus leaning over them from behind. Ethan couldn't help but overhear the whispering coming from above him.

</i>
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
        <i>"I'm not afraid anymore, Annus."</i>

</p><p>
      <i>"Neither am I, Unus. Thank you."</i>

</p><p>
      <i>"Goodbye. Memento Mori."</i>
</p><p>
      <i>"Memento Mori, Unus."</i>
</p><p>"Memento Mori", Ethan whispered under his breath, privately. Amy took a deep breath and pushed the button to confirm the deletion. Mark heard two final contented sighs fade away behind him, and he knew Unus and Annus were gone. The world started moving around them again.

</p><p>


As the clock hit 00:00:00:00, the last grain of sand fell through in Amy's hourglass.
 

</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I went through so many emotions before, during, and especially after the livestream. Unus Annus really ended up being an experience like no other, and I felt I needed to write this today to commemorate the closure beginning to set in. Memento Mori. (The title references the number of seconds in a year. I'm not sure if 31,536,000 is exactly correct, but it was the neatest rounded number I found where the math made sense. For this number to be correct, even with minuscule grains of sand, the hourglass would have to be substantially large, but shh, it's for the narrative;) )</p></blockquote></div></div>
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